The National Security Perspective on Climate Change

8 comments:

As you may, or may not know, Climate Progress is an oxymoron, because it's not about progress, at all. If you look at the top of its blog page you will note that it says it is a project of the Center for American Progress (CAP). Here's a link to source watch that tells you all about CAP. This is not about Progress. It's about controlling the message and steering any way-ward sheep back into the holding pens where they belong. It's important to be extremely vigilant in scoping out any sources from which you receive information. It's your mind they're after. Don't let them have it.

I understand what you are saying about CAP - however, that does not mean that JR is restricted to their agenda or necessarily agrees with it.

I think it's a platform (and salary) for him to advocate for clean energy. CP isn't perfect but it's far more informative than most other sources, and he's got a great community of commenters. Some are much more radical than others and he is pretty good at letting people speak their minds freely, whether he agrees with them or not, as long as they don't distort facts - or even hint at any sort of violence. Well actually, he has a couple of sacred cows - one is Tom Friedman.

Thanks for wading in at the other blogs. I don't visit them unless someone sends me a link. It's too frustrating and I really don't enjoy being condescended to and insulted!

The former drainage in the river bottom, was blocked with, guess what!, fallen trees and dead limbs. The elevation drop is less than a foot over 100 yards. There are more like 100 trees of over a foot diameter on this flat former mill pond bottom. Many would have downed in the bog that was forming; almost quicksand covered with last year's dried leaves. It will drain now.

So here's an indirect effect of ozone killing trees:

Trees on bottom land may be downed and killed by dead trees and fallen limbs blocking the drainage; the expansion of muddy bogs along river bottom land. Increased flying insects living in these new swamps. Dead trees may not hold a riverbed in place which could lead to massive erosion or channel migration.

Am I supposed to be heartened by this video because it somehow shoots a spear into the heart of "deniers?" I am not heartened by this, at all, and I'm not interested in scoring points against "deniers." I don't recognize that term, and I try not to use it.

What's disheartening about this video is exactly what I have been saying is happening with this whole Climate debate. ACC, or AGW, have usurped true Environmentalism and are now front and center. The former Environmentalists have forgotten the Environment, and now the Climate has become the Environment. Bullshit. The Climate is only part of the Ecology of this planet, albeit an important part, but it's not the whole picture, and it's not a clear picture, regardless of the experts say.

Is this what we want? DO we want a militarized response to Climate Change? Because that's what this video says, and that's what we're going to get. The gobs of money that were forwarded to Climate Study making it the industry it now is came from very wealthy and powerful individuals and institutions who have agendas of their won that may not have your best interests at heart, although they may want you believe they do whilst they pull the carpet out from under you.

The impact of human behavior on the environment that creates and sustains life, and let's not forget Quality of Life, on this planet should be the focus. It's why I respect you and your blog, Gail, because you are about the environment. Yes, the climate is a significant part of that, but that's just it...it's part of it, and we shouldn't lose the fact that it's our impact on the environment that matters. Creating clean energy to facilitate further Capitalistic growth meaning the further exploitation of non-fossil fuel resources like WATER....is NOT THE ANSWER. We know as intelligent beings that is a lie. We're kidding ourselves. We must apologize to the earth, and the universe for our way of life, and we must radically change that way of life now. A militarized response to Climate Changes is not the answer...it's insanity. The military is the largest polluter on the face of the earth, and it exists to protect the interests of other polluters. Militaries everywhere have to go if we want to have any chance of mitigating a complete apocalypse.

Also, it's disheartening to see them show pictures of Katrina as proof of ACC. That's blatant misdirection. Katrina was os destructive because New Orleans was always vulnerable to a Hurricane because it's at or below sea level and the levies were neglected for years, decades even.

What about all the people who are dying from pollution related deaths? It puts what happened during Katrina in perspective. Katrina is dwarfed by the systematic daily destruction of life, and quality of life, on this planet from needless, egregious pollution. I don't want to address that issue from the trap backdoor of Climate Change. I want to address that through the front door of Environmentalism, and as a consequence, the Climate will resolve once we stop polluting.

Morroco Bama, I don't find the video heartening, at all! I just think it's interesting that the hard-headed military types understand the multiple threats from climate change, while the politicians refuse to recognize any of it, particularly the costs that are unaccounted for from pollution, whether its extreme storms or cancer or the disappearing plants and animals. Besides, I am against nationalism, so national security is a concept I refudiate.

You have articulated the schism between environmentalism and climate change activism that continually confounds me. It seems suicidal. The irrational hope for salvation through geoengineering is lately the explanation that seems most logical to me. That and the tinfoil hat notion that an evil cabal is really running the show, and perfectly they are perfectly content to see the useless eaters expire.